A bright canopy of interweaving ropes will stretch over the courtyard of MoMA PS1 this summer, part of a temporary urban landscape designed by the 2016 Young Architects Program winner Escobedo Solíz Studio. The Museum of Modern Art and MoMA PS1 announced their selection of the Mexico City-based firm on Monday afternoon, drawing from among five finalists for competition’s 17th edition.
The winning project, Weaving the Courtyard, will be installed this June for PS1’s Warm Up summer music series, which features experimental music and live DJs. The architects will use existing holes in the concrete walls of the courtyard, left over from formwork ties, to hang a textured rope canopy that will shade the concert space. The installation will also feature a reflective wading pool. All of the projects’ materials will be reusable at the end of the summer, complying with competition guidelines that emphasize sustainability.
The museum’s director Klaus Biesenbach calls the winning project “a colorful, celebratory intervention that takes its point of departure to be the existing geometric concrete forms in the courtyard of MoMA PS1, simultaneously creating an urban beach of sand, water, and vibrant colors.”
Escobedo Solíz Studio, founded in 2011, is directed by Lazbent Escobedo and Andres Soliz. The firm aims to create deeply site-specific work, with an emphasis on material experimentation. Their proposal for this competition, along with the shortlisted proposals by First Office, Ultramoderne, COBALT OFFICE, and Frida Escobedo, will be on view at MoMA over the summer.
View our coverage of last year’s pavilion, COSMO by Andrés Jaque, here.